Ride haling app Grab distances itself from troubled Wirecard

Southeast Asia’s largest ride hailing service Grab has postponed a planned partnership with scandal-hit Wirecard.

The tie-up is on hold while Wirecard is investigated over a missing $2 billion in its accounts.

"We have not begun business integration work on the Wirecard partnership and we are pausing the partnership until further notice," a Grab spokeperson told Reuters.

The companies sealed a payment processing agreement earlier this year.

Wirecard was set to process transactions on behalf of the GrabPay e-wallet, rolling out in Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore.

Wirecard hadn’t started processing any payments yet.

Wirecard’s ousted CEO Markus Braun was arrested in Germany on suspicion of falsifying accounts.

He has since been released after posting bail of $5 million.

It is now undergoing a full restructuring, although analysts say the company may not survive the scandal.

The $2 billion hole in its accounts relates to supposed deposits into Philippines banks which authorities are investigating.

Wirecard has payment processing agreements with several travel brands including Dutch airline KLM which is now reassessing its partnership.

It also has contracts with Royal Caribbean and Qatar Airways, among many others.